Wake Up to Murder
A Ricki Rydell mystery
Abby Matthews
Table of Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-one
Twenty-two
Twenty-three
Twenty-four
Copyright
About
One
Ricki was on a mission. With her parent’s wedding anniversary coming up, she wanted to get them something other than the usual dinner at a fancy restaurant. After thirty-two-years together, and putting up with her and her brother, Andy and Thea Rydell deserved the best. Since they retired, they had a lot of free time on their hands, and boredom was starting to set in. Ricki wanted to go big this time. She wanted to give them something special and memorable.
“What about a cruise?” Becca pushed a stroller packed with shopping bags and baby things. Her daughter, Megan, pointed at the dogs as they passed by with their owners and made oof-oof noises.
“Dad would hate a cruise,” Ricki said.
Market Square, just off Main Street in Unionville, was teeming with shoppers and tourists come for the spectacular fall colors and the Lake Somerset Wine Festival. Now that baby Megan was getting older, Becca was more mobile and wasn’t about to pass up the beautiful weather. She demanded Ricki meet up for an afternoon of shopping and gossip. After confronting Jennifer Barnes’ killer in Asbury Park, Ricki took some time away and became a hermit. She had focused on her writing career instead of socializing. The time away was good and productive. She started working on her next book and even outlined another. But once the storm had passed, that old restlessness found her without something to occupy her brain. It didn’t take much convincing to hang out with her best friend. She only let Becca think she had to drag her out of the house.
“What’s your brother getting them?”
“He won’t tell me. He suggested I buy them a weekend spa package, believe it or not.”
“Old Mr. Stick-up-his-butt actually suggested that? Oh, sorry. No offense.”
“None taken.” Ricki gave Becca the side-eye. “My dad would love to have a bunch of women pampering him, but my mother would get jealous.”
“So, what do you have in mind?”
“Well, there’s a film festival in Pittsburgh next month. Unfortunately, I’m too late. It’s already sold out.”
“That sucks. That would’ve been perfect.”
“I know, right? Then I thought, what could I get them that would make their lives easier in the coming years?”
“One of those stair lifts?”
Ricki laughed for a brief second before giving her the side-eye again. “No, smart aleck. I was thinking either a home remodel or buying them a condo in Florida.”
“I vote Florida.” Becca blurted this out without much thought. Ricki knew why and waited for her to say it. “That way, I can visit them.”
“Because I’m sure they would be aching for the pleasure of your company.”
“Well, yah. Your parents love me.”
Because she hadn’t taken a vacation in years, Ricki didn’t want to admit out loud that she also had an ulterior motive for wanting to buy the condo. “I guess we could all use it. If we gave them proper notice, of course.”
“Oh, of course.” Becca studied Ricki’s face. “There’s a but in there.”
“But my mother hates Florida.”
“Is there anything she likes?”
“Pie.”
“It sounds like a gift certificate to Hilltop Inn on Lake Somerset it is, then.”
“That’s what I got them last year.”
Ricki drew her shoulders up, trying to navigate through the sea of bodies crowding the sidewalk. So many tourists. She couldn’t remember the last time she saw this many people in downtown Unionville. It was the perfect opportunity to people-watch, though.
She always studied faces to use as characters in her books. Across the street, she spied a woman with the most golden blonde hair sorting through a collection of vinyl records sitting in a milk crate in front of Ellis Music Store. She was nicely tanned, flawless skin, cheekbones prominent but not strikingly sharp—a natural beauty. Ricki wanted to use that face for a character. She already pictured the heroine’s hair splayed out on a jasmine scented bed while the hero made passionate love to her. But she couldn’t shake the feeling she had seen that face somewhere before. Some people had that kind of face, but she memorized it just the same.
“Ricki,” a female voice called out.
Ricki jerked her head around, searching for the source of that voice.
“Over here.”
Standing about fifteen feet in front of her, a tall, thin woman with a sleek bob hairstyle waved her arms, trying to get Ricki’s attention. “Oh, my goodness, Taryn Wilkes,” Ricki said between a shout and a squeal. It startled everyone standing within earshot. It even startled her because Taryn and Ricki weren’t exactly friends in high school; they were merely friendly. “I haven’t seen you since graduation. How are things?”
“Things are great.” Taryn wasn’t part of the popular crowd, but she wasn’t an outcast either. She wasn’t that smart, nerdy, or a band geek, or anything, really. She was mostly just there. One of those people who were, sadly, an afterthought. You could talk with her one minute and forget about the conversation the next. She had that kind of personality. “I’ve been expecting your call, but—”
“You remember Becca, don’t you?”
Taryn did a double take when she saw Becca. “Oh, my goodness, I didn’t even recognize you. You look so…normal now.” She put her hand on her chest and laughed nervously. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. It’s just that your hair is pretty and you don’t wear that heavy eye makeup anymore. Boy, the more I talk, the worse I sound.”
Ricki put her arm around Becca’s shoulder and gave her an affectionate squeeze. “Yeah, our little girl grew up to be a pretty nice human being. She’s a mom now.”
“A mother?” She laughed. Maybe Taryn didn’t mean for it to sound as if she were astonished by the news of Becca being a mother, but boy did it ever sound like she was astonished that Becca had a child. “Great. That’s great.”
“I’m glad you guys think this is funny, talking about me like I’m not even here.”
“It’s just that you were into that heavy metal stuff. You always wore t-shirts with that one band—who was it?”
“Slayer,” Ricki and Becca said at the same time.
“I was always so afraid of you back then,” Taryn said.
Becca gestured by wiping her hands. “My work here is done.”
Becca had a good sense of humor when it came to how she was in high school. For the most part, she let comments like this slide off her back, but Ricki sensed that this conversation about her appearance and choice of music and that she was now a mom annoyed her. The old Becca would have flipped her middle finger in the air and walked off. The new Becca gritted her teeth and faked a smile.
Ricki had to change the subject and quick or the old Becca, and her middle finger, would emerge. “Did you say you were expecting a call from me?” Ricki winked at Becca. “If it’s about the high school reunion, I already told Brian Mitch
ell I don’t want to be on any organizational committee.”
“No, it has nothing to do with high school, actually.”
The three women blocked the middle of the sidewalk, eliciting snarky comments from passers-by that they needed to move and find somewhere else to gossip. Becca, still irritated by Taryn’s lack of social graces, apparently, redirected that irritation and flipped a group of dudes off. It looked like the old Becca was back.
Ricki grabbed hold of her hand. “What are you doing?”
“We're in the way. Let's go grab a coffee and sit down somewhere so people can get by. The street is crowded enough already without us standing in the way.”
Coffee sounded good to Ricki, but coffee always sounded good to Ricki.
“Besides, Megan needs to eat.”
Ricki looked to Taryn. “Do you have time for coffee?”
She swiped through her phone, contorting her mouth in concentration. “I don’t. I only wanted to touch base with you about the show.”
“What show?”
Taryn tilted her head to one side in confusion. “I’ve been working with a couple of producers over the past few years to put a local talk show together.”
“That sounds exciting,” Ricki said, nudging Becca to agree.
“That does.” Becca moved closer to the building to get out of the way of the people walking on the sidewalk. “Wait, you went to broadcasting school or something, right?”
“I have a degree in Communications. So, anyway, after many years of hard work, we are go. Our new talk show, Wake Up, Somerset is happening and you’re to be our very first guest.”
Becca snorted.
“Is that funny?” Taryn asked, confused.
“No.” Ricki had done interviews in the past, but they were usually for magazines or blogs. She always answered the questions through email, away from the eyes of other humans. She had only done a few live interviews and didn’t enjoy them one bit. The thought of going on television made her stomach tighten. “I’m flattered. But why me?”
“Because you’re a successful romance writer and a local celebrity.”
“I don’t know about that.”
“Your agent said you have a new book coming out in a couple of weeks.”
“My agent? Tracy knows about this?” She hadn’t spoken to her agent in close to a month. It was almost time for one of their monthly phone calls. Still, with something like this, Tracy would have called sooner and given her all the details. Emailed her at the very least. “She never mentioned it. Let me talk it over with her first before I give an answer.”
“She already said you would do it. She said she talked with you or emailed you or something or other. You’re supposed to come to the studio in a couple of days. She said you were onboard with it.” Taryn’s phone rang. She looked at it and rolled her eyes and groaned. “I’ve got to take this. Unfortunately. I’ll be in touch with the details.” Taryn walked away, leaving Ricki standing in the middle of the sidewalk with her finger pointed at the sky and her mouth hanging open.
“Still want that coffee?” Becca linked her arm in Ricki’s and started walking toward the coffee shop.
Ricki’s favorite coffee shop, The Bean, wasn’t near Main Street, and she would have given anything to have one of their strong cappuccinos right at that moment. Tiny Tea and Coffea would have to do. She always avoided the place because of the cutesy way the owner misspelled coffee. Her inner editor couldn’t handle the sight of it.
“Sounds like you need to call your agent.”
“She’s going to hear it from me. Why wouldn’t she call and give me a heads up? I hate being put on the spot like this.”
“You should do it.”
Ricki shot Becca a look and snorted.
“Come on. It’ll be good for you.”
“I’m not going to all of a sudden turn into an extrovert. Why can’t you accept that?”
“Oh, I accept it. But social skills are something you can learn, even if you have to fake it. I’ll help you prepare for the interview.”
“Can you help me prepare for life?”
“You’re 30 years old. Don’t you think it’s a little late for that?”
Ricki nodded. Sounds of clanking dishes and loud conversations came out of the coffee shop. There wasn’t an available table that could accommodate two women with a baby and a stroller full of shopping bags. “It looks crowded. Are you sure you want to do this?”
Becca stepped inside and took a peek for herself. The annoying bell above the door clanged. She stepped back with a jolt. “No. Let’s go someplace else. It’s too crowded. Come on. Let’s hurry.”
Confused by the sudden change in Becca’s mood, Ricki wondered what would have made her react that way. She popped her head inside for a better look, and that was when she saw him. Marty Houck, the guy who broke her heart when he fell in love with someone else, reached across the table and took the hand of the beautiful blonde Ricki admired from across the street just minutes ago. Record scratch. The image of her lovely hair splayed over a jasmine scented bed went up in flames. She didn't look so beautiful anymore.
It suddenly became difficult for Ricki to breathe. She stumbled backwards onto the street and braced herself against the building. She hadn’t seen him, hadn’t talked with him in years, other than exchanging heated emails after the breakup. She hadn’t imagined he would ever come back to Unionville, except for holidays and such. It was pure luck she had missed seeing him on all those visits. Her luck had run out that day.
“Are you okay, honey?”
All Ricki could do was shake her head.
“Let’s get out of here. Hold my hand, but let’s go.”
Ricki turned around quickly and slammed into a woman wearing sunglasses, her blonde hair stuffed under a baseball cap. What, were all women beautiful blondes all of a sudden? “Watch where you’re going.”
“It was an accident,” Becca retorted. “Why don’t you slow down and watch where you’re going?”
“Bite me,” the woman said.
Ricki collapsed to the sidewalk and covered her head with her hands. Becca kneeled beside her. “What is he doing here?”
“Who’s the girl?”
Ricki never told her best friend why she and Marty broke up. She left out the major detail where he fell in love with some girl he met on a business trip to Chicago. It looked like now she had no choice but to explain everything to Becca. It was time to get it off her chest, to get it out of her mind, out of her heart, out of her soul, to be done with it forever.
“That’s the girl he left me for.”
“I’m sorry? I thought you said you guys had a big fight and broke up. You never said anything about a girl.”
“I was too humiliated to tell you.”
Becca’s eyes grew wide. “I can understand that, but I’m your best friend. I could’ve helped you through it if I knew.”
“I don’t need this right now.”
“If you don’t trust me enough to tell me he left you for another woman, I wonder how little you think of our friendship.”
“I was devastated. I could barely get out of bed.”
“And I was there for you, holding your hand the entire time, but that’s not even the point. You had years to tell me what happened and you didn’t.” Becca stood up and brushed dirt and small pebbles off the knees of her jeans. “You know what? I’m just going to head home. Between this and Taryn’s insults, I’ve had enough for today. I’ll call you…later.”
Stunned by seeing Marty, Ricki didn’t even try to stop Becca from walking away. Some time away to think things over would help the both of them.
By now, the people walking by on the street shot questioning glares in her direction. They whispered to each other, wondering if she was okay or if she was drunk so early in the morning and what a shame that was. She was certain she didn’t have the dignity to get up and walk away, but she managed to find the strength to get up off the ground. One foot in front of the other, s
he fought back tears the entire way home.
Two
Rumpus greeted Ricki at the door as if she had been gone an entire year. He sensed she was upset and clung to her side. With the door closed, and the crowd on the street far behind her, Ricki was finally free to let it all out. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she took her coat off and hung it in the closet. It slipped off the hanger and crumpled to the floor in a heap. Rumpus gave it a good sniff. He was right there with her when she changed into a pair of baggy sweatpants and an oversized sweatshirt. When she wrapped a quilt around her shoulders and collapsed on the couch, he crawled under the covers with her.
After two years, she thought she was over Marty. She thought she would be okay seeing him for the first time since he left for Chicago to start a new life with someone else—that gorgeous blonde with the perfect face she admired from a distance.
She never had an opportunity for closure, though, not really. Marty went on a business trip on a Wednesday and came back to Unionville on Sunday to pack his bags and, oh yeah, I met someone I love more than you. Thanks for the memories. Her emails to him, filled with questions and accusations, went unanswered most of the time. He didn’t feel the need to explain himself even though she demanded an answer. It seemed the more she demanded, the less interested he was in replying. And just like that he stopped responding altogether. So much for closure. She had tucked that unfinished business away in her heart, never to be felt again, but today was an unkind reminder that some wounds never completely heal.
Ricki shot upright, knocking her dog to the floor. “I’m not doing this again.” Rumpus gave a good shake and faked a hearty sneeze. She scooped him up in her arms and hugged him. “I can’t go down this road again.” Rumpus wiggled to get free. She set him down on the floor and scratched the spot between his shoulder blades as an apology for knocking him off the couch. “I need to do something or I’m going to burst.”
Seeing Marty and his fiancée wiped everything that happened that morning out of memory. What did happen that morning? She tapped a finger on her chin. There was the walk, the gossip, the crowds, oh and seeing Taryn Wilkes for the first time since high school graduation. Taryn wanted her to be a guest on a new talk show—something her agent failed to tell her about. That memory quickly flooded her brain parts and set her off.
Wake Up to Murder (A Ricki Rydell Mystery Book 2) Page 1
